June 2010 Vol. 237 No. 6
Projects
Kinder Morgan Announces Cochin Pipeline Expansion Plans
Kinder Morgan Energy Partners plans to modify and expand the existing Cochin Pipeline system to provide a solution for transporting NGLs from the Marcellus Shale Basin to fractionation plants and chemical markets near Sarnia, Ontario, and Chicago.
Plans call for construction of 250 miles of NGL pipeline from the Marcellus Shale Basin in southern Pennsylvania to the Cochin interconnect at Riga, MI. From Riga, Kinder Morgan anticipates product will be transported through the existing Cochin system to Windsor, Ontario and then through the Windsor-Sarnia pipeline to Sarnia. Plans include reversal of the eastern leg of its Cochin pipeline in order to move NGLs from Riga to the Chicago area where it expects to build a 30-mile pipeline to connect to existing fractionation facilities and chemical plants.
The pipeline will be designed to transport mixed NGLs (Y-grade) as well as purity NGLs such as ethane, and will have initial throughput capacity of 75,000 bpd expandable to 175,000 bpd.
A decision by Canada’s National Energy Board directing the reconnection of the Cochin Pipeline to the Windsor-Sarnia Pipeline will enable Cochin Pipeline shippers to have access to the Sarnia chemical complex. Kinder Morgan anticipates offering transportation from Marcellus to Sarnia for less than 14 cents per gallon.
Kinder Morgan expects to move forward with an open season in the second quarter. For information, contact either Karen Kabin at (713) 369-9268 or Karen_Kabin@kindermorgan.com, or Don Lindley at (713) 369-8840.
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